Two Northerners and beloved Manchester legends Liam Gallagher and John Squire launched a new duo, and their first song is called “Just Another Rainbow.”
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Oasis is a musical descendant of The Stone Roses, and diehard fans remember the 1996 shows in Knebworth, England, when Squire joined Gallagher and his brother Noel on stage for “Champagne Supernova.”
Noel Gallagher said Knebworth is where Oasis peaked, and it’s fitting that Squire—whose band influenced the Gallaghers as much as The Beatles or The Smiths—was there.
Both brothers have released multiple solo albums post-Oasis, and Liam also released music with Beady Eye, the remaining parts of Oasis not named Noel. Beady Eye fizzled because it’s hard to carry on when the guy missing is one of his generation’s defining songwriters.
Squire reunited briefly with The Stone Roses in 2011 before the band’s usual tensions ended things for the second time. Meanwhile, Liam’s solo career has produced releasing three straight No. 1 albums.
With Oasis in the news for their Rock & Roll Hall of Fame nomination and the desert boot-wearing, poncho-equipped loyalists praying for a reunion, Liam Gallagher and John Squire’s collaboration is the next best thing.
The Masterplan
Youth carries with it a crazed desire for something—success, art, adventure. “Just Another Rainbow” follows the search for something, everything, but it’s tethered to the reality that life doesn’t always end in a fairytale.
However, the acceptance isn’t sadness. In a world consumed by production, sometimes it’s nice just to go outside and stare at the clouds or a rainbow.
I, I walk the Earth
I search the sky
Just another rainbow
No pot of gold
Waiting here for me
Said Squire about the song, “To me, the most obvious take on ‘Just Another Rainbow’ is that it’s about disappointment, and the sentiment is that you never get what you really want. But I don’t like to explain songs. I think that’s the privilege of the listener; it’s whatever you want it to be. To me, it’s also one of the most uplifting tracks we’ve made together, which is weird.”
Just another rainbow
Hanging over me
Just another rainbow
Dripping on my tree
Super-producer Greg Kurstin (who also played bass) and drummer Joey Waronker (Beck, Atoms for Peace) appear alongside Gallagher and Squire on the track. Aiming for Madchester nostalgia, the rhythm section of Kurstin and Waronker echoes Mani and Reni from The Stone Roses.
Liam Writes, Too
Noel Gallagher wrote the songs on every Oasis album, leading to Standing on the Shoulder of Giants in 2000. Liam Gallagher wrote one song on that album called “Little James.” But it wasn’t his first writing credit.
Squire’s post-Stone Roses band, The Seahorses, released their debut album in 1997 called Do It Yourself. Squire and Liam Gallagher co-wrote “Love Me and Leave Me,” The Seahorses’ third single.
Speaking with Apple Music’s Zane Lowe, Squire said the idea began with the opening guitar riff. The rest of the song followed quickly, with Squire writing the lyrics, too. The duo recorded demos at Squire’s house before recording the album in Los Angeles with Kurstin.
ROYGBIV
Squire is most famous for being the guitarist in The Stone Roses, a groundbreaking Manchester band that defined the Madchester music scene in the late ’80s. You don’t get Oasis without The Stone Roses, and you don’t get Liam Gallagher without the Roses’ frontman, Ian Brown.
However, Squire is also known for being a painter. He designed The Stone Roses’ iconic artwork, including the Jackson Pollock-inspired piece on their self-titled debut. Squire’s Rickenbacker guitar also featured a Pollock-style paint job.
The reclusive guitarist focused on painting when Squire backed away from the limelight. “Just Another Rainbow’s” artwork reflects Squire’s painting with its pop-art acrylic lacquer can.
Gallagher leans into the theme during the song’s bridge, taking listeners back to toddler times, singing the colors of the rainbow.
Red and orange, yellow and green
Blue, indigo, violet
We’ve crossed a line
No Surprises
Liam Gallagher isn’t a man who’s musically full of surprises. You’re not going to get Kid A, and if you’ve followed his career, you already know he loathes the saxophone. His collaboration with Squire sounds like you imagine it would.
Both Oasis and The Stone Roses sound uniquely like themselves, but it’s not difficult to trace their musical tracks. Gallagher’s Lennon-meets-Rotten-snarl is there, and Squire’s Jimmy Page-style blues is there, too.
It sounds like Manchester in the ’90s when the bands were obsessed with ’60s psychedelia. “Just Another Rainbow” is familiar and ticks all the wistful boxes for those missing the glory days.
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Photo by Chris Jackson/Getty Images
